Das Glas Wasser

German musical comedies of the 1950s and early 1960s are almost throughout rather embarrassing spectacles for a modern audience, made to a formula, full of clichés, films that were already dated when they first came out. In fact, these movies are frequently constructed in a very similar way to Bollywood mainstream flicks, complete with dark-haired seductresses and mustachioed villains, etc.

But there are exceptions to this rule and "Das Glas Wasser" is one. The film is witty, intelligent, a little saucy, set with a remarkable (and remarkably clever) production design, and carried by excellent performances from the whole cast. Although Gustaf Gründgens is best known for his serious theatrical work, especially during the Nazi-era, he shows here that he is equally at home in comedies, displaying a comic timing that most genre regulars could learn from.

This rare German film is hard to find, but it offers a unique look at two different pieces of history: the time and place in which it was made as well as the people of that era's take on the era which this period piece represents.

Other than that aspect, the film is an interesting viewing experience, if nothing else. I don't normally enjoy musicals but this one is perfectly tolerable. Recommend.

In 2018, Olivia COLMAN (OSCAR 2019: ACADEMY AWARD), Rachel WEISZ (OSCAR 2019: nomination for THE FAVOURITE) and Emma STONE (OSCAR 2019: nomination for THE FAVOURITE) shone in the film THE FAVOURITE by Giorgos LANTHIMOS. But almost 60 years earlier, a remarkable West German feature film was made based on the same template as THE FAVOURITE. Both films are based on the play THE GLASS OF WATER by the French playwright Eugene SCRIBE (1791 - 1861).

We are in the year 1710. The indecisive Queen, Anne of England (Liselotte PULVER), is in the War of the Spanish Succession. She is manipulated by her scheming lady-in-waiting, Lady Churchill / Duchess of Marlborough (Hilde KRAHL), so that England becomes more and more entangled in the disastrous war. This is heavily criticized, especially by the busy newspaper publisher Sir Henry St. John (Gustaf GRÜNDGENS). The amorous desires of the man-crazy Lady Churchill also draw the dashing soldier Arthur Masham (Horst JANSON) and his delightful fiancée Abigail (Sabine SINJEN) into the unrestrained game of intrigue.

As if on a theater stage, the actors walk around in exquisitely designed sets and now and then sing what is going on inside them. It is so well done and acted that watching it is a real joy. The wonderful cast is clearly in their element. Liselotte PULVER (GOLDEN GLOBE 1964: nomination for A GLOBAL AFFAIR), Hilde KRAHL and Sabine SINJEN can be seen in beautiful costumes and can almost keep up with their successors COLMAN / WEISZ / STONE in terms of cheekiness and lewdness. For 1960, this was pretty witty and daring. The West German audience liked it too: more than 3.8 million visitors wanted to see the film, which was peppered with super stars of West German film, in the cinema.

The film by successful director Helmut KÄUTNER (OSCAR 1957: nomination for DER HAUPTMANN VON KÖPENICK) entered the competition at the BERLINALE in 1960 and was nominated for the Golden Bear. In 1961, Hilde KRAHL was awarded the GERMAN FILM AWARD. Rudolf FORSTER received a nomination for his supporting role as Marquis de Torcy.

German Humour in the 50s and 60s? Oh, yeah, let's have a laugh about it! Sadly, it's true, during the 50s and 60s one could only seek and

not find humour and art in German films. At least those who were

striving for it didn't really stand a chance, as the so-called

"Heimatfilm" was Box-Offing everyone else. Still there were exceptions. Like director Helmut Käutner who, from "Große Freiheit Nr.7"

which was banned by the Nazis despite starring the times biggest

star Hans Albers, to "Die letzte Brücke", which turned Maria

Schell into an international celebrity, had shown his individualism and never gave in to the comfy no-style of the

Adenauer-aera. "Das Glas Wasser" turns out, in retrospect, to be one of his

best, if most neglected, pictures. It was not a success at the

time of its release precisely of its qualities. At that time

everybody in Germany wanted to be told how great it is to live

in this country, after all, those who had survived had managed

the "Wirtschaftswunder", and that corruption may have played a

part in it was something nobody wanted to hear and that a

"royal" (like Adenauer) could fail was out of the question. But "Das Glas Wasser" is neither comforting nor wholesome, in

fact it it is cynic, or if one prefers, realistic, depicting

Queen Anne as a naive and indecisive non-entity while the

Countess of Marlborough and the Viscount of Bolingbroke fight it

out among themselves. Definitely not a message the Germans

wanted at that time. Nevertheless a film only proves its quality by the test of

time, and "Das Glas Wasser" holds up very well indeed. The

credit goes, not in the least, to the actors. Gustaf Gründgens and Hilde Krahl, the german/austrian equivalents of Laurence Olivier and Katharine Hepburn turn each

line into a battlefield of wit, and to watch them is not only a

joy but also a lesson in comic timing that Jim Carrey should

cherish. And Liselotte Pulver, a German Mega-Star at that time

(until then not known for subtle characterizations) turns in a

surprisingly subtle, witty and emotional performance as hapless

Queen Anne. Finally –surprise, surprise – even Horst Janson

(Masham) and Saabine Sinjen (Abigail), as the lovers, stick to

memory – not a bad feat in this kind of film, that grants the

best lines to the leading actors. Still it's Helmut Käutner's direction which provides the perfect

surroundings. He obviously knew from the beginning that

realistic art design would destroy the lofty architecture of

Eugène Scribe's play. So he decided on a completely artificial

look (no exteriors, flashbacks in black/white). The Queen's

chambers are always shown in blinding white, as is the Queen,

while the Countess of Marlborough is usually dressed in the

opposing colours black and dark red, and the innocent Abigail is

dressed in green, the colour of hope (and innocence). Bolingbroke‘s (as the communicator) clothes always fit into the

picture and therefore he never seems to stand out. Mashams red

uniform obviously turns on all the ladies and makes proceedings

so difficult. Besides the artistry so obviously inherent in the picture,

people turned their backs to the movie. Seeing it today one

cannot help but thinking that, whether knowingly or unwittingly,

Käutner had dissected his country at the time (thereby

fulfilling Scribe's intentions of exposing human corruption and

hypocrisy through satire) and thus alienated it. But whatever the intention, he managed to produce the only

really funny German mov